Samurai Secrets
by Lily Hanson
Summary: Follows Colour Coded. Yes, the Shiba House does have a doorbell. Yes, it does work. That doesn't mean the Rangers are expecting someone to visit.
1. Someone's At The Door

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything_

Programming the Black Box was turning out to be a lot harder than Antonio expected, and he knew right from the get-go that it was going to be _hard_.

He had all the power symbols programmed, now he just needed to get them to work together to combine their powers and open up the box so he and the other Rangers could have a new weapon.

But this was where things were getting tricky. Every Samurai symbol that ever existed was crammed inside the small box and for some reason they couldn't all work together. It was no wonder the red Rangers couldn't get this little device to work. Not only did he need the elements to cooperate and work as one, but he needed the folding Zords to work with him and their fellow Zords. It was definitely a difficult task, and it would be a while still before he opened the box. He just hoped that when he finally got it, it wouldn't be too late. His only saving grace was Master Xandred's refusal to send Arachnitor back into battle. If the spider Nighlok did return and Antonio didn't finish the Black Box, the Rangers were screwed.

So Antonio worked hard, day and night, to get everything running smoothly inside the box so it would open. He knew in order for that to happen he would have to understand the power symbols and the elements and he decided to start his quest for knowledge by reading the history books in the common room and working his way up to the Rangers and what they knew about their own powers and elements.

As he flipped through the pages, he couldn't help but notice sticky notes and markings on the pages, as if someone had been studying them intently. Antonio knew Mia had a moment where she wanted to learn all she could about Dayu and it suddenly occurred to him that the pink Ranger hadn't mentioned the villainess' name in a long time.

Distracted from his work on the box (because it was long, boring and hard), Antonio grabbed the book in his hand and got up from his seat. He walked into the dojo where Mia was training on her own. He cleared his throat, catching her attention. She turned to him with a smile.

"Hey, what's up?"

Antonio held up the history book, "I saw you left pages and pages worth of notes in this book."

"Yeah," Mia grabbed her towel from the bench and wiped the sweat from her brow, "It had a lot of information on Master Xandred's army and how it came to be. I didn't find too much on Dayu in there, though, but it's still good to know about Master Xandred. Why do you ask?"

"No reason," Antonio shrugged, "I just saw them and… well… I realised you haven't been studying as hard as usual. The books are always on the shelf and you're either in here or cuddling up with Kevin so…"

"I'm not studying Dayu anymore, if that's what you're asking," Mia snapped back. Antonio looked down at the book.

"Oh… um… well… why? I mean… it got a little annoying, you protecting her and stuff but I think it could have really come in handy, you know, if you had figured something out. Something to humanize her or…"

"Dayu's not worth it," Mia shrugged and she turned back to the punching bag. "Because of her that Nighlok nearly got his hands on Urumasa and you, Kevin and Emily almost drowned."

"Because of her? You quit because Dayu's a bitch?" Antonio asked with a chuckle. "She's always been a bitch, Mia. There's more to it than that."

"You weren't there, Antonio," Mia sighed. "You don't know what happened. My studies distracted me from my Samurai duties."

"But…"

"I didn't pay attention," Mia interrupted. She didn't want to argue with Antonio and she wasn't going to give him the chance. She would drill her point into his skull if she had to and she wouldn't give him the chance to fight back. "I focused too much on Dayu that by the time I got back to the Nighlok, it was too late. Dayu, whatever she is and whoever she was, isn't worth losing any of you."

"In case you forgot," Antonio said, "The reason we were down in that water was because Kevin, Emily and Jayden had a funny feeling. The reason we almost drowned… that's not your fault."

"But…"

"Mia," it was Antonio's turn to interrupt, "We all get distracted with Nighloks and stuff. One thing I learned is you have to focus on the results in this line of work. Who cares how we destroy the monster? Who cares how it happens? As long as we all make it out in the end victory is ours."

"Did you really have to say that," Mia's lips curled up and she let out a small chuckle. Antonio smirked.

"Besides, if it wasn't for you and your Turtle Zord, we wouldn't have made it to safety. Kev, Em and I were pretty far out. Kevin's a good swimmer, but pulling Emily all that way back would have killed him, and I know Octozord was too beat up to make it. I'm surprised he could pull me to the surface like he did."

"I guess…"

"So," Antonio drummed his fingers on the cover of the book, "do you think you'll ever go back to studying Dayu? Maybe your study doesn't have to be as intense as before, but it could help. It worked with Dekker."

"Don't remind me," Mia sighed. "Dekker was a fluke, I'm sure of it. If he wasn't in love with Serena…"

"Things work out when we put a little effort into what we do," Antonio held out the book for Mia to take. "Dayu's not going to figure herself out and she's not going to open up to us anytime soon. As long as we all promise not to drown again… maybe you could go back to studying?"

"I don't know why you care," Mia took the book from Antonio.

"We can be study partners," the gold Ranger chuckled. Mia smiled.

"Alright, you convinced me. I'll look into it a little bit. Nothing major, though. I'm not going to let myself get distracted by Dayu again."

"I promise no one will drown this time," Antonio placed his hand over his heart. The moment he did the doorbell rang, causing both him and Mia to jump. Antonio looked down at his chest in shock.

"Was that me?" he asked.

Mia shook her head. She had heard the doorbell ring once before so she knew what it was. She chuckled and patted Antonio on the shoulder as she walked to answer the door.

"I wonder who that could be," she said out loud. Antonio followed her.

"We have a doorbell? Why do we have a doorbell?"

"For when Rangers forget their keys, I guess," Mia shrugged. "It's probably just one of the guys who locked themselves out by accident."

She reached the front of the house and opened the door. She gasped loudly and her eyes widened when she saw Spike standing on her doorstep. He wasn't looking at her just yet; he was busy admiring the training equipment in the yard.

"That's some cool Samurai stuff!" he said without turning to the door, "You folks must really be Ranger…"

He trailed off for a moment when he turned and saw Mia and Antonio standing at the door. Suddenly, his mouth began to work again, but his brain was still lagging slightly.

"M-M…M-Mia! I… I mean… I… Pink… Pink… Pink!"

Spike was pointing at Mia's training uniform, lined in pink. Mia looked down, realising what he was trying to get at. He already had his suspicions about her and this didn't help quiet those suspicions.

"Uh… Spike," Mia closed the door a little bit, limiting Spike's view of the inside of the Shiba House, "how did you find this place? I live in the middle of nowhere."

Spike was blushing madly as he stared at Mia with love-sick eyes. Slowly, he managed to point to the forest as more words fell from his mouth.

"Training… want… Samurai… Uncle… lost… house."

"What? Spike, full sentences, please," Mia groaned. Behind the door she gestured for Antonio to go find Emily. If anyone could make sense of the love-sick teenager it would be her.

"You're so pretty when you're surprised," Spike grinned. Mia dropped her head in her hands and sighed.

"Why me…?" she felt a tap on her shoulder and signalled to Spike to wait on her doorstep, though she was sure he wasn't about to leave her anytime soon. She closed the door and turned around, finding Emily looking up at her.

"What's up?" Emily asked. "Antonio told me there was an emergency?"

"Spike," Mia pointed to the door. "Fix this problem now."

"Spike? Here?"

"That's what I want to find out," Mia nodded. Emily gulped loudly and started to open the door. Mia pulled her back suddenly.

"Wait, wear this!" she reached for the coat rack and pulled off the closest sweater she could reach. She tossed it at Emily, "Hide your yellow, before he really gets suspicious."

Emily glared at the red sweater, "Mia, I'll drown if I put this on."

"Just do it!" Mia snapped. Emily grumbled, slipped the sweater on and stepped outside to deal with Spike.

Mia raced to the kitchen where she found the four boys. Antonio seemed to be filling them in on who was at the door.

"Hide all the Samurai stuff," she told them.

"Is it true?" Mike asked, "That Spike kid, he's at our door?"

"Yes."

The boys stood frozen for a moment. The Shiba House had been placed in the middle of nowhere to prevent situations like this from arising. It was so far away from town and so deep in the forest that no one was ever supposed to wander out and accidentally find it. Unfortunately, Spike seemed to be an exception.

"Well?" Mia asked when she saw the boys were in shock, "Emily can't keep him distracted forever. We need to hide everything related to the Samurai Rangers."

"I'll work on the dojo," Kevin raced out of the kitchen with Mike on his tail to help. If Spike did come into the house, the dojo would be a dead giveaway to who they really were.

"Antonio and I will hide the books," Jayden bolted out to the common room. Antonio was right behind him. Mia groaned loudly. Suddenly, the Ape and the Bear Zord whizzed around her head. She snatched them out of the air and stuffed them into her pockets.

"Sorry, guys. No flirting today," she told them before racing around the house to find the rest of the folding Zords.


	2. Come In, Spike

Emily stepped outside and closed the door behind her. She could feel herself shaking in panic but she tried to keep a calm face as she turned to look at Spike.

"How did you find this place?" she asked.

"I, uh… well… I got lost," Spike answered her. He glanced over her head at the door, "Um, where did Mia go? Why do you live with her? I thought you lived with your Uncle."

"Long story," Emily didn't want to get into details. She was a horrible liar so she needed to keep herself from saying too much. Hopefully she would be able to get Spike to do most of the talking, "How did you get lost all the way out here? It's miles from town."

"I know. Uncle Bulk took me out here to practice our Samurai moves," Spike adopted a questionable stance. Emily bit her lip to contain her laughter as she watched him. Suddenly he started to blush, "Uh… well… I guess, by the look of your training gear, you're a much better Samurai in training than I am. Though it helps that you have a real Samurai Ranger living in your house!"

The colour drained from Emily's face, "Wha… what do you… you mean Mia?"

Spike nodded his head, "You still don't believe me? Have you asked her? What did she say? How did she react?"

"Spike, she's not a Ranger!"

"Wait a minute…" Spike tapped his chin, "You live with her! You're, you're in on it, aren't you?"

"In on what?" Emily frowned. She then shook her head, "Spike, this pink Ranger/Mia fantasy is crazy. So you usually see her wearing pink, that doesn't mean anything. I know for a fact it's her favourite colour, but that's it."

"Oh yeah, when did you and Mia first meet?" Spike asked.

"About a year ago, but what does…"

"AHA!" Spike pointed a finger in the air, "You met her a year ago… would this happen to be around the time the Samurai Rangers got together? When they suddenly arrived in town and started fighting evil?"

"What?"

"Was Mia new in town when the Rangers first showed up?"

"No," Emily shook her head. "Mia's lived here her whole life. I was new in town. I grew up on a farm, remember?"

Spike's face fell, "Oh… right…"

Emily grabbed the taller boy by the arms, "Look, Spike, I promise if I ever find out the identities of one of the Power Rangers, I'll tell you right away! You'll be my first phone call."

"Mia's a Ranger…"

"No, she's not," Emil could feel her heart racing and the laying of sweat covering her body as she lied. She was horrible at lying, but for Spike's safety she knew she had to do it, "It's a cool thought. Sometimes I like to think my boyfriend's a Power Ranger. But I can promise you, Mia's not a Ranger. We watch them on the news all the time."

"Live?" Spike asked, his face falling even more in disappointment. Emily winced, seeing how upset he was, but she nodded her head.

"Yeah, live."

"And the pink Ranger was there?"

"Yeah," Emily thought her heart was going to beat right out of her chest and it was started to get very hot under Jayden's sweater.

"And yellow? You never know, she could be the yellow Ranger."

"She's not yellow," Emily could say this without any guilt. "It was just a crazy fantasy, Spike. It was kind of cute, but there's no way Mia could be a Ranger."

"I'm still not completely convinced," Spike had a right to be. He wanted to trust that his one and only true friend was telling him the truth, but she seemed very uncomfortable. He saw her hands trembling and the sweat on her forehead. He could hear an occasional stammer when she spoke. She was trying to hide something, and now he wanted to figure out what.

"Because that's what you want to believe," Emily touched his arm gently. "Spike, would I lie to you? Why would I lie to you?"

"But… explain all the Samurai stuff?"

"My mentor… uncle has a lot of money," Emily shrugged. "Mia is a fan of the Rangers and I have a lot of energy. He thought this training equipment would keep us busy during the day while he… uh… worked."

"What does he do?" Spike asked, just out of curiosity.

"I honestly have no idea," Emily chuckled. It was then the door opened behind her. Jayden gestured for Spike and Emily to come in. Emily looked at Jayden as if he were crazy but Jayden gave her a look that told her everything was going to be fine.

"Mia tells me you're a friend of Emily's. What brings you here?" Jayden asked, closing the door behind Spike.

"I got lost. I was out here with my Uncle and… wait a minute, who are you? Emily, I thought you lived with your Uncle and Mia."

"Uh…" Emily looked to Jayden for help. He quickly came up with an excuse. He offered his hand to Spike.

"I'm Emily's cousin," he told him. "I'm Jayden. Look, kid, if you're lost, we don't mind you waiting here until your uncle finds you. There's a phone in the kitchen you could use to call him."

"Uncle Bulk dropped his phone in the river," Spike lied. If Emily and Jayden were hiding something, he needed the chance to figure out what. He couldn't go home just yet, "but I'll leave a message at home. I'll let him know where to find me."

"Perfect," Jayden put on a fake smile and pointed Spike in the right direction. When he was gone, Emily turned to Jayden and smacked him on the arm.

"You let him in! I just convinced him Mia wasn't a Ranger. What's he going to think when…?"

Jayden grabbed Emily's arms, "Calm down. We've thought this through."

"I hope you're a better liar than me," Emily muttered. "I don't think I'll be able to lie to him while he stays here. I mean… what am I going to say when he asks about Mike, Kevin and Antonio? How many people can live here before he starts to assume…"

"The key to lying is to make it believable," Jayden assured Emily. "Keep it small. Stick to the truth as much as you can and fabricate what needs to be altered. Mike is your boyfriend, Kevin is Mia's fiancé. Spike won't need to know where they live."

"If he asks? What about Antonio? Jayden…!"

"If he asks, Mike lives in town. You two met during a monster attack. The monster was about to hurt you and Mike jumped in and saved you."

A smile appeared on Emily's lips. That was, for the most part, true. She and Mike didn't exactly meet when he saved her, but in her first battle against the Nighlok she did have a bit of a hard time and Mike came to her rescue.

"And as for Antonio, he's my friend from out of town. He's staying here for a few days," Jayden said. Emily took a deep breath.

"Okay… you know, you're really good at this lying thing. Scary good."

"I've been a Samurai my entire life," Jayden shrugged. "It's a skill I needed to learn."

"Quick, tell me a lie," Emily challenged her leader. Jayden's eyes widened for a moment and then he smirked.

"I've been hiding a big secret from you guys," Jayden said, looking Emily in the eye. "The responsibility of red Ranger hasn't always been mine. There's someone else."

Emily stared up at her leader, blinking for a moment as the words sank in. Suddenly she started to smile.

"Whoa, you are good."

Jayden pointed to the kitchen, "Go find Spike before he gets himself into trouble. We've hidden most of the Samurai stuff, but I don't want him accidentally finding something. It's bad enough he found this house."

"Got it," Emily nodded and hurried into the kitchen. When she was gone Jayden let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his head. It scared him to think he was getting so good at lying that Emily didn't believe him when he did tell the truth.

But he pushed that aside. His secret was something he would worry about another day. Right now he had to focus on getting Spike out of the house without any information on who he and the others really were.

-Samurai-

Spike hung up his cell phone. Truth be told, he had dialled the wrong number and had left a message with a very confused older woman, but he had to make his phone call believable. When he tucked his cell phone away he smiled at Emily.

"I called the neighbour," he told her. "She's going to try and get in contact with Uncle Bulk. Once he knows where I am, I'm sure he'll come find me."

"Great. Until then… I… I guess you can hang out here."

"Cool, so what do you do for fun around here?" Spike looked around the kitchen, trying to find any clues to what Emily was hiding from him. She still seemed very nervous.

Kevin walked into the kitchen after cleaning up the dojo and saw Spike. He had met the bumbling teenager before, but given Spike's relentless attraction to Mia, Kevin wanted to introduce himself.

He stood tall and proud and stuck out his chest slightly. When Emily saw this she giggled slightly but bit her lip to keep herself from offending Kevin. He shot her a sideways glance before holding his hand out for Spike.

"Jayden told me we had a guest," he said. "I'm Kevin. I'm Mia's _fiancé,_" he stressed that last part in hopes Spike would understand. The much younger boy nodded his head.

"Oh… you're… the… lucky…" Spike stammered. He shook Kevin's hand but found the older, taller and stronger man's grip rather painful.

Emily saw the pained look on Spike face and smacked Kevin in the chest, causing it to deflate – for lack of a better word.

"Kevin, Spike's harmless!" she cried. Kevin released his death grip on Spike's hand and took a few steps back.

Spike nodded his head quickly, "Look but no touch… okay… okay… I get it… I…" he gulped when Kevin shot him another look. "Uh… no look… won't even look… she's uh… she's all yours, sir…"

"Speaking of Mia, I think I hear her calling you, Kevin," Emily said through clenched teeth. Kevin was starting to board on overprotective and she wanted to get him away from Spike before he truly terrified the younger boy.

Kevin took the hint and walked off, leaving Spike alone with Emily. When he was gone, Spike let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Uh… is he always like that?" he asked.

"He's got this crazy protective instinct," Emily nodded. "I didn't notice it, but apparently he was really bad when I first started dating."

"You've known him that long?" Spike asked.

"Yeah… uh… pretty much since I moved in with Mentor, uh, Uncle Ji…" Emily really needed to take a class in the art of lying. "He and Mia have been dating for a long time and… well… Mia's kind of like a big sister to me, especially seeing as I'm away from mine and… Kevin just… Kevin kind of… He's like a big brother."

"Oh, cool," Spike smirked. He glanced around the kitchen, "So, does this house have any other rooms. I wouldn't mind a tour."

"A tour?" Emily squeaked. She hadn't been there for the cleanup so she had no idea which rooms were safe to visit, if there were any. But Spike insisted.

"Yeah. You said Mia was a fan of the Samurai and you watch them all the time on the news, right?"

"Yeah…"

"You've got to have a clubhouse where you pretend to be Samurai Rangers, seeing as apparently no one here is. My Uncle Bulk and I have one! It's awesome, I'll show you one day!"

"A clubhouse?"

"I know you have one, Emily," Spike smirked knowingly as he started to walk away from his friend. "If you don't show me, I'll find it!"

"Spike…"

Spike stepped out into the hallway and grabbed the handle for one of the doors. Slow, but surely, he started to pull it open. When it was about halfway open, he whipped it out the rest of the way and jumped inside. Emily winced and looked away quickly; terrified he would find something he wasn't supposed to find.

But what Spike failed to noticed was that the door was only a door to a closet, and when he jumped inside he smacked right into the shelves holding the spare blankets and pillows. Spike groaned loudly and fell back onto the floor.

Emily heard a thud as he crashed into the ground and turned to find him nearly passed out on her floor. Her eyes widened and she raced over to him.

"Spike! Are you okay?"

She helped him sit up and Spike started to shake his injury off. He swayed for a moment, but soon found his balance.

"You should have told me that was a closet," he said. "Ow!"

"Sorry," Emily carefully pulled him back to his feet. "Don't worry, I'm always running into things too. There's a bag of peas in the freezer if you need."

"I'll be fine," Spike rolled his head from side to side, waved his arms and legs around and flashed Emily a smile, "There, good as new. So, what other secrets are you hiding?"

He hadn't meant to ask it that way. By secrets he was referring to the fact that Emily hadn't warned him he was about to jump into the closet. But he found it interesting how she winced when he said secrets. Now he was sure there was something going on in this house.

He was starting to get that feeling again. That feeling he got when he knew he was right, even when there was very little proof of the fact. He would get to the bottom of this.


	3. Follow The Rangers

"A lot of you live in this house," Spike commented while he and Emily finished their tour of the house outside. Emily couldn't understand why Spike wanted to look around, but to keep him from getting really suspicious she needed to try and act like there was nothing to hide. Of course, because of her big secret, she was nervous and scared every time they ventured into a new room. Fortunately, all the other Rangers had done a good job at hiding all the Samurai stuff.

"Just me, Mia, Jayden and Mentor, uh, Uncle Ji," Emily had to stop making that mistake. She noticed Spike glancing at her curiously but he didn't say anything. She continued with her lie and tried to make it look convincing, "Uh… the… the other people just… visit… they visit us a lot."

"Emily, are you okay?" Spike asked. He stopped walking and looked at his friend curiously. She stopped as well and shrugged her shoulders.

"Why?"

"You just seem… nervous," Spike answered. "Do you not want me to wait for my Uncle here? I guess I could go somewhere else… I don't know my way back, though so…"

"It… it's fine," Emily stammered.

She screamed and jumped a foot in the air when an arm wrapped itself around her waist. Spike stepped back, startled at her reaction, while the person who grabbed her just laughed.

"Whoa, Em, it's just me," Mike reached down and kissed her cheek. He looked up at Spike as Emily started to settle, "Don't mind her. She's been a like this since the kidnapping," he lied effortless. Emily looked up at him, feeling both impressed and disturbed. He was really good.

"You told me at the store that you were fine," Spike frowned.

"She tries to hide it," Mike smirked, squeezing Emily gently before holding his hand out, "We haven't been properly introduced. I'm Mike, Emily's boyfriend."

"Spike," the younger boy shook Mike's hand. Unlike when he shook Kevin's, this one was actually firm but gentle.

Mike gave Emily a quick pat on the shoulder after shaking hands with Spike, "Why don't you go help Mia in the kitchen?"

"Mia? As in just Mia?" Emily asked. Mike nodded his head.

"That's exactly why I'm asking you to go help," Mike chuckled. Emily took this opportunity and ran. She liked Spike, but if she had to spend another minute lying to his face she was sure the truth was going to slip out.

When Emily left, Mike turned his attention to Spike, "So, how exactly did you find this place? First time Emily told me where to find her I got so lost they had to send a track and rescue team to find me."

"I just sorta stumbled upon it," Spike shrugged. "My Uncle Bulk and I are Samurai in training and we came out into the forest to train. We got separated, I started looking around and wound up here."

"Samurai in training, huh?" Mike asked. He pointed to the training dummy by the house, "How about you show me a few of your moves?"

Spike nodded and approached the dummy. He bounced on the spot for a moment to warm himself up and prepare himself to attack. Suddenly, he unleashed a fury of punches and kicks, barely leaving a mark on the dummy but when he was done he pulled away and shook his hands and feet painfully.

"Ow, that's some tough stuff."

"It has to be able to survive Lady Slips-A-Lot," Mike chuckled. "Speaking of ladies, I hear you have a crush on one of ours."

"I…"

"Emily told me," Mike smirked. He couldn't help but tease Spike for having a crush on Mia. It was part of his nature to tease people. "You know she's getting married, right?"

"Yeah, I met her fiancé," Spike nodded and he recalled Kevin's handshake. He massaged his hand. "He seems tough."

"I'm sure you can take him," Mike shoved Spike gently, trying to get him to straighten up and hold his ground. Spike stumbled pathetically to the side before turning to Mike with a frown.

"I can take him? He's twice my size in every way!"

"But I have a feeling you've got more heart," Mike placed his hand on his chest. "That'll win Mia over for sure."

"No… she seems happy," Spike shook his head. "I guess that's one dream I'll have to let go."

"You still have the pink Ranger, right?" Mike saw Spike giving him a suspicious look. He shrugged, "Emily and I share quite a bit. She says good things about you, don't worry."

"I thought I knew who the pink Ranger was, but I'm back to square one again."

Mike placed his hand on Spike's shoulder, "You know, that might be a good thing. It keeps the fantasy in your head. Who did you think the pink Ranger was?"

Spike blushed, "Uh… Mia."

Mike bit his lip thoughtfully and turned to the house for a moment. When he looked back at Spike he nodded.

"I can see it. She does wear more pink than anyone else. And I've seen her training with these dummies. She could kick my ass."

"Emily insists she's not the pink Ranger, though, but I'm sure of it," Spike said. "It's just a feeling, but it's a strong feeling."

"Are you really going to argue Emily on that, though?" Mike asked. "Look, if there's one thing you need to know about Emily, she doesn't lie, and seeing as she lives with Mia, I'm pretty sure she would know if Mia was a Pink Ranger, or any other Ranger for that matter. And that's a good thing for you, dude."

"How?"

"It means the pink Ranger might still be single," Mike chuckled. He gave Spike a strong pat on the back, "You still might have a shot."

"But if Mia's not the pink Ranger, where am I going to meet her?" Spike sighed. Mike was about to answer him when he heard his Samuraizer go off. His eyes widened for a moment, though thankfully Spike didn't see, but that didn't mean he was out in the clear. He still had to figure out what to do about the horribly timed Nighlok attack.

"Did you hear that?" Spike asked, looking around after hearing a loud beep.

Jayden and all the others burst out of the house.

"Mike, my dad just called, he needs us downtown!" Jayden shouted as he grabbed Mike's arm and started dragging him away.

"What about Spike?" Mike asked.

"He can wait for his uncle here," Antonio said before turning to the younger boy, "Just don't touch anything, okay? Jayden's dad'll kill you if you break anything."

"Got it," Spike saluted; happy the six of them were leaving. It would give him a chance to snoop around. he waved goodbye to the six teens with a big smile on his face before their numbers suddenly sank into his head. There were six of them, just like how there were six Rangers. There were two girls and four boys, just like the Rangers. And they had to run off suddenly, all together because Jayden's dad needed them.

Spike's search for the Rangers wasn't done yet. In fact, it was now better than ever. Using the Samurai skills his Uncle taught him, Spike followed the six teens through the forest and into the city.


	4. Spike Sees The Truth

Spike was kicking himself mentally as he raced through the city, running in the opposite direction of the crowd of people. He had lost his six friends on the way here. They had disappeared somewhere in the crowd, but now that he knew there was a monster attack in the city; he knew the Rangers wouldn't be far. All he had to do was figure out where the people were running from and he would find the Rangers.

He was nearly trampled a couple of times, but he finally made it to the source of the chaos. The Rangers were already downtown fighting off an ugly Nighlok. They seemed to be struggling a little bit, but Spike was confident they would pull through. They were the Samurai Rangers, they always pulled through.

He decided to watch them, but decided it was best to take cover. If the Rangers saw him standing around they would get him to leave. He saw a big piece of fallen debris from a nearby destroyed building and ducked behind it, only poking his head out so he could watch the attack.

Suddenly the gold Ranger went flying through the air and crashed into a street light. Almost instantly the red Ranger was by his side, picking him up and making sure he was okay to fight. Spike's eyes lit up with excitement as he watched. He had never seen a battle up close before.

He quickly remembered he was here on a mission, though. He was very suspicious of his six friends and wanted to know if they were, in fact, the Power Rangers. He watched and listened carefully for clues. Names, body language… anything would do, as long as it served a proof that he knew who the Rangers were.

His eyes strayed to the pink Ranger and as he watched her, a thousand questioned rolled through his mind. Who was she really? Was it possible she was Mia? Was she really as nice as he thought she was?

He gasped when she was knocked down, rage boiling inside him and he glared at the evil Nighlok who would dare to hurt someone so beautiful and graceful. He watched with a little feeling of jealousy as the blue Ranger came to his pink Ranger's side and pulled her back to her feet. But when the pink Ranger was up again, she seemed to shake off the attack, as if it didn't hurt her. Spike was now feeling proud. The pink Ranger was so strong and brave. If he was with her, he would always protect her, but it was nice to see she could hold her own if needed.

Letting his thoughts stray, Spike forgot about the battle for a moment and imagined himself as one of the Power Rangers. If he had to choose which one to be, he would want blue. He knew red was the leader and while green and gold were cool colours it seemed blue was pink's partner. That's what he wanted to be. Pink's partner. He wanted to help her in battles and have her fight by his side.

He was distracted for so long he didn't see as gold and red went in for another attack, and he failed to hear the gold Ranger shouting the red Ranger's name as he was struck hard in the chest and fell to his knees. Spike didn't see the gold Ranger come to his friend's aid, only to be blasted back.

Spike didn't see the blue and pink Ranger rush into battle. Not in real life, at least. In his mind, he and the pink Ranger were the only two Rangers running to save the town from a monster and they were doing really well. In real life, though, Pink and Blue barely did any damage before they too were shot back and they landed in a heap on the ground.

"That's it!" the green Ranger shouted loudly and finally Spike was snapped out of his thoughts by the voice. He thought it sounded familiar. He turned his attention back to the fight and saw the green Ranger rushing forward. Spike's eyes were glued on the green Ranger and he watched him swing his sword, punch and kick the monster until he too was blasted back. The yellow Ranger jumped in from behind the monster, slashing him down the length of his back and distracting him long enough for the green Ranger to jump back to his feet and get back into the fight.

"You Rangers are really starting to bother me," the monster spoke. "This time, I think I'll send you away for good!"

The monster clapped his hands and they started to glow. Spike saw the Rangers scrambling to get up and find shelter and he thought it was probably best if he did the same. He ducked under cover and made himself as small as possible before hearing a loud boom and he felt the earth shaking, knocking him onto his side. Spike closed his eyes and waited for the horror to pass. The Rangers would make it out of this alive, he knew they would, and they would keep the city safe.

Then, over the sound of the fading boom, Spike heard screaming. He knew it was likely the Rangers, but there was one scream that seemed to be coming right for him. He opened his eyes and courageously, yet, stupidly, poked his head out from hiding only to be hit in the face instantly by someone flying his way. He rolled on the ground with the body before coming to a stop, tangled up with the yellow Ranger.

"At least it's not red, blue, green or gold," he muttered to himself as he tried to sit up. "That could have been really awkward."

He pulled himself out from under the yellow Ranger and just when he was freed she started to stir. Spike watched, hoping she would be okay so she could get up and fight again, but suddenly she started to glow. Then, magically, the yellow spandex covering her body and the helmet protecting her head disappeared and Spike stared down in shock. She laid face down, so he couldn't see her face just yet, but he was definitely staring at the yellow Ranger.

She groaned loudly, trying to pick herself up while Spike tried to get a look at her face, but her blonde curls were keeping him from doing so. Finally, he reached out for her.

"Here, yellow Ranger, let me help you… Emily?"

Emily sat up, clutching her ribs and she looked at Spike in horror.

"S-Spike…"

"I knew you were hiding something!" Spike shouted. He was both excited and angry. He was excited because he finally got to meet a Power Ranger and it turned out she was already his friend, but angry because he felt he had been lied to, which he had. He had been lied to by his only real friend.

"Spike! What are you doing here?" Emily asked.

"I followed you!"

"What? Why?" she shouted. Spike turned to the battlefield, where the Nighlok was bouncing around in joy at having seemingly knocked the Rangers right out of battle.

"Why do you think?"

"Antonio told you to stay at home!"

"Are they here too?"

"Who?"

"Your friends. They are Power Rangers too, aren't they? Mia… I was right!"

"No, Spike, it's… it's just…"

"Emily!" Mike's voice called and he soon stumbled over and found Emily and Spike hiding behind a piece of debris his eyes widened as he quickly realised what had happened. "Spike?"

Spike turned to Emily. She had been about to lie to him again. Now he knew Mike was a Ranger too. He glared angrily at her. Emily shrugged her shoulders, understanding his look.

"To be fair… you never asked about Mike."

"You promised me you would tell me if you knew!" Spike shouted. "You're my friend and you lied right to my face!"

"Spike, it wasn't like it was easy to do. I didn't want to lie but…"

"I knew you were hiding something," Spike snapped. "You're a horrible, liar, you know that…"

"Yeah…" Emily lowered her head. Mike looked at Spike.

"Look, kid, I know this is kind of frustrating and confusing, but you don't know how dangerous this is. If someone found out…"

"You're my friend," Spike spat to Emily, "My only friend."

He hopped to his feet and stormed off, headed for home. Emily looked up at Mike, hurt and worry in her eyes.

The other Rangers hurried over to them.

"We finally took care of that Nighlok," Jayden announced as he arrived looking very beat up.

"Uh, Jay, we have a bit of a problem," Mike said. "Spike followed us here. He saw everything."

"What? He… he…"

"He was supposed to stay home," Kevin growled. This kid was really starting to get on his nerves.

"Well, he didn't," Mike shrugged. "Now he knows."

"He'll tell everyone," Kevin panicked. "We're screwed."

Mia rolled her eyes and knelt down beside Emily. She placed her hand on her little sister's shoulders.

"It's not your fault," she told the yellow Ranger.

"This is why I don't lie," Emily muttered. "You always get into trouble when you lie. Now Spike hates me."

"He'll calm down, he'll realise why you did it and he'll apologize," Mia assured her. "It's just natural to get pissed off when you realise someone you trusted hid some big secret, right guys?"

Mia looked up at the boys and Jayden felt like she was looking directly at him. His heart started racing in panic but he kept a brave face and nodded his head, just like the others.

"Now that Spike knows, we need to figure out what to do next," Kevin said. "If he decides to tell…"

"He won't tell," Mia shook her head. "I've said it before and I'll say it again: Spike's a good kid. He'll do the right thing in the end."

"Mia, you can't be sure! He's pissed, what if…"

"He doesn't have anyone to tell," Mike said. "He told Emily she was his only friend."

"It's just him and his uncle," Emily nodded. "His dad is overseas and he hasn't had much time to make any real friends… except me."

"We'll give him a little while to calm down and then we'll talk to him," Mia said. "It's all we can do."

"If he blabs?" Kevin asked.

"We'll cross that bridge _if_ we get there."


	5. All's Well That Ends Well

After running away from Emily and the other Rangers, Spike wanted to shout out their secret to the either world. He felt betrayed by all of them, but Emily especially. Deep down, he knew he had figured it out on his own before the truth was revealed, but it still hurt to know the only true friend he had ever made (or, at least, he thought she was a true friend) had lied to his face. She told him Mia wasn't a Ranger over and over again. He hadn't seen the pink Ranger's face yet, but he knew there was no one else. Emily had promised him she would tell him if she ever found out the Rangers' identity. What hurt the most was that she had made that promise knowing she had already broken it.

Spike kicked a rock, oblivious to the fact that it was a rock and not a pebble. He stubbed his foot, hurting his toes and bounced down the sidewalk until he reached a bench. He sat down and massaged his foot while never taking his mind off the Rangers.

He was really started to let everything process now that he had to chance to sit down and breathe. On one hand he felt hurt he had been lied to, but on the other hand, he knew who the Power Rangers were. He had met them and spoken with them. He had been a friend to them, something he hoped they wouldn't forget. It felt good, knowing he was the only person in the city who knew the identity of the Rangers.

That was when it started to occur to him just how much power he had. He knew the identity of the Power Rangers. He could easily tell the entire world. He was sure many people would doubt him, but some people would be convinced. He could out them and…

Spike furrowed his brow as his thoughts trailed off. He began to wonder what exactly he had to gain by spilling their secret. It wasn't like he was going to get the fame or glory. Once people knew who the Rangers were, he would go straight back to being "Spike who?". No one cared about the messenger.

Then he started to think of all the attention the Rangers would get. He had seen it before, when the fake Rangers decided to come out and steal the limelight. It had been fun and games at first, but knowing the identities of the Rangers could put everyone at risk.

Spike started to wonder if maybe the secret identity thing was best kept a secret. He was lucky to know, but the Rangers probably didn't feel the same way. Now that he knew, the villains could come after him for information. Spike began to panic, realising the danger he could be in in this very moment. He was close with the Rangers. He considered one of them to be his friend, another was his first and only crush, and most of the guys he met seemed like cool guys. He worried the monsters would come for him because he knew.

He didn't quite know his way back to the Rangers' house, but he knew he had to get back there and figure something out to keep himself safe.

-Samurai-

"This is exactly why I did not want you Rangers forming personal relationships with anyone outside of this house!" Mentor Ji shouted angrily, slamming his stick against the table in front of Emily. The yellow Ranger jumped in her seat, terrified of her Mentor in his moment. Mike was immediately by her side.

"It's not like she wanted him to find out!" he shouted back. "It's…"

"Silence!" Mentor growled. Mike was about to argue but he felt Mia grab his arm and pull back, her signal for him to calm down before he made the situation worse for himself and Emily. Mike took a deep breath and allowed himself to calm down while Mia tried to talk with Mentor.

"Spike's my friend too," she said. "I don't know him as well as Emily, but of the rest of us, I've run into him the most. I know it's not a good thing that he found out, but better a friend than a total stranger, right?"

"We have no idea what Spike is going to do," Mentor shook his head. "He could already be telling the press about us now. Everything we've worked so hard to protect could already be in danger."

"In danger?" Antonio asked. He furrowed his brow, "Mentor, there is nothing dangerous about Spike. Besides, the monsters who want our secrets already know who we are and where to get them."

"Do not argue…"

"Look, Mentor," Kevin started, "I'm not exactly fond of the kid, but maybe the others have a point. He seemed to have a genuine friendship with Emily. Maybe we can use that."

"NO!" Mentor shouted. He slammed his stick down on the table again, his face red with rage, "This needs to be fixed before the day is done or I will take care of Spike myself."

Mentor stormed out of the room, leaving the Rangers to exchange worried looks. They had no idea what Mentor planned on doing to Spike, but they didn't want to find out.

Finally, Mia sighed, "I think we've given Spike enough time to process everything. I'll go see if I can find him."

"You?" Kevin asked, sounding worried. Mia shot him a look and Mike couldn't help but laugh.

"Relax dude, she's still wearing your ring."

"But he's…"

"A hurt kid," Mia said to her fiancé. "He was lied to by his friend, so I doubt he'll listen to Emily. I'm the next best thing. Maybe I can talk him round; keep him from telling the entire world who we are."

She leaned forward and gave Kevin a kiss, "I love you."

"I love you too," Kevin sighed before letting her leave. Mike was still chuckling as he stared at his best friend.

"You're threatened!"

"No I'm not," Kevin shook his head. "I just don't like the thought of him flirting with Mia. It's creepy."

"Whatever. You're threatened," Mike laughed.

Jayden got out of his chair, "I'll go talk with Mentor. This is a serious issue, but we need to figure out the proper way to handle things. I doubt 'taking care of Spike' would be the right thing to do."

"So… uh… now what?" Antonio asked when Jayden was gone. He looked at the three remaining Rangers. When his eyes fell on Emily he saw she was holding back tears. His face softened.

"Em, don't listen to Mentor. He's got a short fuse when it comes to the Samurai stuff. He used to yell at me and Jay all the time."

"I don't care about Mentor or this stupid Ranger thing. I hate lying," Emily sniffed and hugged her knees to her chest.

Mike placed his hand on his girlfriend's back, trying to comfort her, "You did it for a good reason, Em. We couldn't let anyone know. You were trying to protect Spike."

"He hates me," Emily buried her head in her arms. "I hurt him. He doesn't have other friends. Not close friends… I had to lie to him… I hate being a Samurai!"

"We'll figure this out, Em. Don't feel bad," Kevin tried to comfort his little sister. "You were doing the right thing."

"Yeah, look where that got us. I should have told him the truth from the start," Emily huffed. "He knows regardless and now that he hates us who knows what he'll do. What if Master Xandred finds out and he gets hurt? It'll be my fault."

"Emily, we all lied to him," Mike wrapped his arms around the little ball that was Emily. "You're not the only one to blame here. I bet, when Spike realises why you lied to him, he'll come back here and he'll apologize to you."

Emily uncurled herself and got to her feet, "I'm going to my room."

-Samurai-

Mia was surprise when she reached the bus stop and saw Spike was stepping off the bus. She thought he would be somewhere in town sulking or talking to a reporter, but he had somehow found his way back.

She approached him, scaring him slightly when she walked up behind him.

"You're sneaky," she told him and he turned around to face her. His mind almost went to mush but he remembered he was here to do something important. He knew the Rangers' secret. His life was in danger.

"You are the pink Ranger, aren't you?" he asked.

Mia nodded her head. There was no point trying to hide it anymore. He had figured out Mike and Emily already and if she lied, she only risked alienating him further. Right now, the best thing she could do for herself, her team and Spike was keep him close.

"One and only," she said. "Sorry… the pink Ranger's not single either."

"I'm kind of bummed about that," Spike chuckled. "So, judging from what I saw in the battle, I take it your fiancé is the blue Ranger."

"Kevin," Mia nodded. "Jayden's red, Antonio's gold. While we're at it, Jayden and Emily aren't cousins and Ji isn't Emily's uncle. He's our Samurai Mentor."

"Okay," Spike said. He looked at Mia, "So… am I in trouble or something?"

"Why would you be in trouble?" Mia asked.

Spike shrugged his shoulders, "I know your secret. Won't the bad guys come after me?"

"Not if they don't find out," Mia answered. She grabbed Spike's arm and pulled him into the forest. "Look, Spike, I have to ask: have you told anyone?"

"No," Spike shook his head, "Why would I?"

"It's big news. A lot of people, especially reporters, would kill to know who we are. You would be paid a fortune for a scoop like this."

"But it would just make things complicated for you," Spike shrugged.

Mia couldn't help but smile when he heard this, "Glad to see I was right to stand up for you. You are a good kid, Spike. I knew you would do the right thing."

"You stood up for me?" Spike began to sway and hope glimmered in his eyes. Mia steadied him.

"Whoa, whoa, Spike, please don't do this now. I'm engaged, remember?"

"Oh… right," Spike nodded, kicking the fantasies out of his head. "Why would you stand up for me, though?"

"Like I said, you're a good kid, and just because I'm engaged doesn't mean we can't be friends."

"Friends?"

"You've got all the Power Rangers on your side, Spike. We didn't want to hurt you by lying to you. Honestly."

"Yeah… I realised that."

"Good boy," Mia smiled. She started to see the gates of the Shiba House and stopped walking. Spike stopped with her and turned to face her.

"So, what do we do now?" he asked her. "Are you going to erase my memory?"

"No, Spike," Mia laughed. "That's not something we do. Do you promise not to tell anyone about us?"

Spike nodded excitedly and crossed his fingers over his heart, "Cross my heart and hope to die."

"Let's not hope to die," Mia smirked. "Not a soul, Spike. Not even your Uncle can know about us. The less people who know, the better for us and the safer you'll be."

"So, what do I have to do, then? I mean… how does this work? How are you guys going to keep me safe? Am I going to have bodyguards following me around? Will one of my bodyguards be you?"

"Spike…"

"Sorry."

"No bodyguards. You'll go back to your regular life with your Uncle and occasionally you'll bump into one of us Rangers. We have to keep things as normal as possible so no one becomes suspicious of anything."

"Back to my normal life?"

"Consider yourself lucky you can go back," Mia nodded. "We don't have a normal life. The life of a superhero isn't all it's cracked up to be."

"Okay, but… before I go back to my normal life…"

Mia pointed to the Shiba House gates, already knowing what he was going to ask, "The house is that way. I'll let you in."

"Thanks, Mia. I have a few apologies to make," Spike followed Mia as she led him the rest of the way to the house.

-Samurai-

After apologizing to the boys for following them into battle, Spike set out to find his friend. Mike had told him she was hiding out in her room, but he couldn't quite remember where that was. The house was really big and there were so many rooms.

Finally he found it and he knocked on the wall after stepping inside, trying to grab Emily's attention. She was sitting on her bed and looked up when she heard a knock. She was shocked to see it was Spike.

"What are you…?"

"I'm here to apologize," Spike interrupted her. "I know you lied, but you're a Power Ranger… identities need to be kept secret. I'm sorry I got mad at you."

"You're sorry?" Emily frowned. "I shouldn't have lied! You trusted me and…"

"But you didn't lie about something stupid," Spike shrugged. "You lied to protect me. It was to keep me safe. I never thought you would be a Power Ranger, but I guess… I shouldn't have pushed it. Either you really didn't know anything and I had no right to snoop and question you, or you did know and… well… this."

"It really wasn't easy lying to you, Spike," Emily said. Spike laughed.

"Yeah, I noticed that. You're not very good at it. That's why I got so suspicious."

"I'm really sorry you got wrapped up in all of this," Emily sighed. "You've been nothing but nice to me and now we're stuck in a tight spot. You're in danger…"

"Mia already talked to me," Spike said. "We figured that out. I need to keep my normal life to stay safe."

"That doesn't mean we can't see each other, right?" Emily asked. "I mean, we saw each other before you knew. If we bump into each other…"

"We'll say hi, yeah," Spike nodded. "And as soon as you and the other Rangers defeat Master Xandred, we can really start hanging out again. Like real friends."

"Another reason to fight," Emily smiled. "Well, two more reasons to fight: keeping you safe and our friendship."

"I don't need protection," Spike chuckled, raising his hands up in front of his body, showing off his Samurai stance and causing Emily to laugh, "I'm a Samurai in-training."

"If you're a Samurai in-training, I'm the best Samurai that's ever lived," Emily teased. "When we can hang out again I'll teach you how to be a real Samurai."

"Deal," Spike nodded his head. It was then Jayden popped his head into the room.

"Spike, sorry to say this, but you really have to go," he said. "The longer you stay…"

"The more danger I'm in. I know," Spike nodded. He looked at Emily, "Friends again?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

Spike smiled back and turned to leave. He found his own way to the door but heard the footsteps of the other Rangers following him. Before reaching for the door he turned to them.

"I'm sorry… again."

"Don't worry about it," Antonio waved it off casually. "It's a bit of a relief not having to hide our identities from everyone."

"If you ever run into trouble, you know you can come to us," Mike said. "Well, Nighlok trouble, I mean."

"Your Uncle's probably looking for you," Mia reminded the young teen. "You should probably head home before he worries."

"Yeah… and thanks, guys… you know, for not erasing my memory."

"Go home, Spike," Mike chuckled. He opened the door for Spike, letting him leave. Spike stepped out, but before he was truly gone he heard Jayden call his name.

"Consider yourself an honorary Ranger," Jayden said with a smile. "We'll talk about you being an honorary Samurai after you've gotten a few proper lessons."

With a bright smile, Spike left the Shiba House for good, swearing he would do his part to keep his friends safe by not telling anyone about anything that had happened.


End file.
